Proposal for the update of the report on infrastructure bottlenecks
and missing links in the European transport network

1.1 The Russian Federation is constantly striving to develop the European network of roads, railways, inland waterways and combined transport links; it favours the eastward expansion of these networks to link up with the corresponding Asian networks under the United Nations Joint Programme on Developing Eurasian Transport Linkages.

1.2 Details of bottlenecks in the Pan-European transport-corridor and transport-area infrastructure in the Russian Federation are given in Table 1. All the bottlenecks cited do or will impede the efficient flow of domestic and international passenger and freight traffic, delay the arrival of passengers and goods and drive up transport costs. Bottlenecks have a particularly significant impact on road infrastructure, where the problem is systemic and is getting worse every year as the number of road vehicles increases.

2. Regulatory measures to eliminate bottlenecks

2.1 To eliminate bottlenecks in a systematic fashion, the Government of the Russian Federation has approved a special federal programme “Modernization of the Russian Transport System (2002-2010)”. This formulates a comprehensive approach to the development of all modes of transport and is intended to promote more effective utilization of material, financial and human resources. It comprises 11 subprogrammes, two of which, “information systems” and “international transport corridors”, are crucial and provide the backbone for the other subprogrammes.

2.2 Since the main railway lines in the Russian Federation have significant unused track and rolling-stock capacity, yet mostly conform to international standards in terms of their technical equipment, their subsequent development under the federal programme will be in the area of upgrading and modernizing infrastructure so as to increase train speeds.

2.3 On the road network, reconstruction work is planned on existing highways in order to upgrade them and improve traffic safety. Road-building will be confined to missing links on highways so as to join them into an integrated international traffic network. Provision is also being made for the development of service facilities on the road network.

2.4 The inland waterway infrastructure will be developed along Eurasian transport corridors with a view to maintaining sufficient clearances on inland waterways used by international shipping and ensuring the safe and reliable operation of such waterways.

2.5 In addition to the special federal “Modernization of the Russian Transport System (2002 2010)” programme, the Russian Federation has also drawn up a national programme to upgrade and develop the road network in the Russian Federation up to the year 2025. This latter programme aims to develop the road network in accordance with the needs of the population, the

national economy and the transport infrastructure, to ensure it meets the requisite technical, capacity and density standards, and to increase mobility and boost economic activity. It provides for:

The establishment of a single road network including federal, local and municipal roads to meet the growing demand for road transport and ensure year-round communications between regions and communities throughout the country;

The preservation of the existing road network and high-priority efforts to maintain, repair and upgrade existing roads;

The establishment of a network of modern motorways in the directions of the principal road traffic flows, including international transport corridors, bringing permissible vehicle loads and dimensions up to international standards;

The construction of new and improvement of existing roads, where appropriate, increasing the capacity of suburban roads and city streets; construction of bypasses; provision of road access to primary transport hubs, railway stations, sea and river ports, airports, terminals and other transport infrastructure facilities;

A reduction in transport costs, an increase in traffic speeds, optimization of the road network and a reduction in the number of unnecessarily long road journeys, better and faster carriage of goods and passengers by road;

Year-round transport links to communities, provision of timely medical treatment, increased road safety, reduction in the number and scale of losses due to road traffic incidents, and a reduction in the adverse impact of road transport on the environment;

Better value for money spent on the roads: more effective systems for managing and financing the road infrastructure and a better system of pricing and procurement for the road network;

Better road works through the use of new technologies and materials, the application of advances in science and technology and the development of the national road engineering and road-building industries;

4.1 The following action was taken in 2003 to develop the infrastructure of Pan-European transport corridors and Pan-European transport areas in the Russian Federation:

Corridor IX

Roads:

Construction of bypasses around St. Petersburg (8.9 km put into operation at a cost of 9,745.6 million rubles (RUB) and Vyborg (16.6 km, RUB 410.6 million) on the highway from the Finnish border (origin Helsinki) to St. Petersburg in order to divert road transit traffic away from urban areas;

Upgrading of the St. Petersburg-Moscow highway involving the widening of the carriageway to four lanes (13 km, RUB 42.1 million);

Upgrading of the approach roads to Russian seaports on the Gulf of Finland either under construction or undergoing renovation (8 km, RUB 95.8 million);

Upgrading of the St. Petersburg-Pskov-Belarusian border highway (continuing to Vitebsk, Gomel and Kiev) (RUB 78.8 million).

Railways:

Reconstruction of the St. Petersburg-Buslovskaya section (RUB 162.8 million);

Development of the St. Petersburg rail hub, including the reconstruction and development of the stations serving the main port at St. Petersburg (RUB 1,020.6 million);

Construction of stations to service new seaports (RUB 70 million);

Development of the border station at Chernyshevskoe (Kaliningrad oblast) (RUB 46.2 million);

Development of the border station at Suzemka (RUB 10.9 million);

Construction of the Ladoga station in St. Petersburg (RUB 6,629.7 million).

Corridor II

Roads:

Expansion of highway capacity along the route Belarusian border-Smolensk-Moscow-Vladimir-Nizhny Novgorod involving widening of the carriageway to four lanes and the construction of a bypass around Vladimir (RUB 388.3 million);